JEREMIAH 48:1 - 49:22 (continued from yesterday - the 9 nations to be destroyed) MOAB: (48:1-47) Moab is the incestuous offspring of Lot and his oldest daughter. Moab was more civilized than the surrounding tribes, and so got the reputation of being proud, arrogant, and self-sufficient (48:29). The Moabites seduced Israel to idolatry and impurity (Num 25), and hired Balaam to curse them. SIN is what brought on Moab destruction, "for he magnified himself against the Lord," (48:26) boasting against God's people that whereas Israel was fallen, Moab still flourished. 48:11 tells us that "his scent is not changed." because he hadn't been purified from his "lees"(passed from conqueror to conqueror in order to get them to repent). MOAB is a type of the flesh whose characteristics are self-satisfaction, idleness, complacency, insolence, arrogance, refusing correction and won't mature, and thus manifest a MIXTURE. Moab helped Nebuchadnezzar against Judah, but later Neb turned on them and subdued Moab. Moab is now called "Jordan".
AMMON: (49:1-6) The present capital of Jordan is Amman. It is paired here with Moab because they are "relatives" and their characteristics are similar, with the addition here of aggression, violence, warlike and cruel. AMMON also demonstrates the principle of mixture. They, too, are incestuous descendants of Lot (Lot represents the flesh.)
EDOM: (49:7-22) Descendents of Esau, Jacob's twin brother. They, too, represent the FLESH, the natural man - - - "contrary to the Spirit" (Gal 5:17). God promised to eliminate this nation completely, and sure enough - there are no Edomites anymore. Edom had a share in Jerusalem's fall, and would be "stripped clean". (Obad 10-14) They were prideful and felt secure because they lived in the mountains. But pride is the idolatrous worship of ourselves, and so they were brought low.
RESPONSE: Everything of the flesh is marked for destruction. The flesh is the part of us that is rebellious, proud, self-satisfied (sometimes), and doesn't want to be corrected. Even the parts we've had all our lives! Even the parts that are ALMOST "Christian" - just a little flesh mixed with spirit. Places where we've really tried to be spiritual and haven't quite made it. Some of these things die and "fall off" from disuse, and we don't even notice they are gone until later. Others we have to dig out with a new habit that will kill it. For example, if you are a chronic complainer, you have to aggressively go after that with thanks and appreciation. It is harder to complain if you are thankful. And complaining is so self-righteous! Ugh!
2 TIMOTHY 4:1-22
HOLDING UP UNDER THE PRESSURE TO "TRY SOMETHING ELSE":
(1) chapter 1: Guard the Truth. V.13 says "hold fast the pattern of sound words". The Bible reveals the actual nature of Reality. So it is to be much more trusted than anything else.
(2) chapter 2: Be strong in the Lord. V.1 says "be strong in the grace of Jesus..." We RECEIVE God's "dunamis" in the inner man. "Dunamis" is the Resources of God in me. Additional synonyms are "might, ability, strength, sufficiency, force, wealth, dominion, valor". Our part in this is to STAY STRONG, to "cash in" on what is inside us from God. To actually partake of that strength. And we do that by staying committed like a soldier, by training rigorously like an athlete, being diligent like a farmer, enduring rather than denying the Lord, and watching out for the pitfalls - arguments over words, dangerous desires of the flesh (walk away from some; RUN from others; don't try to suppress them!), and rebellious or defiant attitudes.
(3) chapter 3: Form vs. Power: Rigorous training in the Scriptures will save you from pitfalls. (3:1-9) The easiest pitfall to fall into is to be self-deceived, leaving us without the power to be changed. "Going thru the motions" won't change us. Obeying the Church-rules won't change us. Joining the church won't change us. Reading our Bibles won't change us. God's Word (the Bible) has to get INSIDE us thru obedience, in order for us to be changed by it. It's not about what we DO, but about what we ARE on the inside. We are changed from the inside-out. Hebrews 5:14 calls this process the formation of "habits" ("practices"). We must form new habits of sanctification, to replace the "evil tendencies" of our flesh (Jam 4:6 Ampl.)
(4) chapter 4: Complete your assignment. This chapter is not speaking to "ministers" or "preachers". We are ALL called to "preach the Gospel" (Mk 16:15, etc.). This is our universal assignment as believers in Jesus. "To preach" here means "to tell", "to declare". It means "to make known the Truth of the Gospel" - whether by correcting, patiently coaxing, being consistent, never giving up. This can be done anywhere: over coffee, while standing line at the grocery store, in the office, etc. Remember, Jesus and the rest of the heavens are watching you, and you will give an accounting. There is no real curtain between the visible and the invisible worlds; "they" can see us (Heb 12:1). So tell everyone that God loves us, He pities us, He cares about our lives, He has given His life to redeem ours from the pit.
How to be sure that I complete my assignment of preaching the Gospel:
V. 2: Always be prepared and ready - whether anyone wants to hear it or not, because there is an urgency in getting the word out: there will come a time when people won't want to hear it any more.
V. 5: "Watch all the time" - Don't let yourself get apathetic or lulled to inattention, but stay alert to opportunities. Remember the urgency here. Look for opportunities to be a blessing and to talk about Jesus.
V.5: Endure hardship - Expect opposition, rejection or persecution. This is a war with the Kingdom of Darkness; of course it's hard. Don't be discouraged by it. Be a hero.
V.5: Evangelize - It does not say that you ARE an evangelist. It says to DO IT. Be pushy.
V.5 Finish your assignment: "make full proof of your ministry". We are the "servants of the Lord" (2Tim 24) and we don't have many options. We have obligations. Fulfill all the requirements of God's servants without complaining. Be faithfully obedient.
EXAMPLES: Paul wrote that he was ready to die because he had completed his assignment. He had "kept the faith", and did not deny Christ under pressure (even going to jail), and because he "fought a good fight" - he would receive a crown. On the other hand, Demas succumbed to external pressure and preferred "this present world" to Christ Jesus, which 1Jo 2:15 and Jam 3-4 equate to being self-serving and unfaithful to God. Alexander actually verbally opposed Paul, arguing against him in public.
FIRM ASSURANCE: 4:18 - "Deliverance and preservation". This does not mean that we are delivered OUT OF evil, but we will come THRU evil into eternity, into forever! The Lord will stand by us, He will strengthen us in difficulty and danger, and His Presence will more than make up for everyone else's absence. As you may have guessed, Paul was probably already dead by the time Timothy received this letter. He was martyred (beheaded) by Nero. And Timothy? According to Hebrews 13:23, Timothy went to prison.
RESPONSE: I have to admit that when I think about being delivered and preserved by God, I am not thinking in terms of eternity, but more like my present circumstances. Paul was executed for his faith, but yet said that God delivered him and preserved him! I must put things into perspective - this life is short when compared to eternity. It is better to be harmed in this life and go to heaven, than to be treated well here and then go to hell when we die!
PSALM 95:1 - 96:13
(Please refer back to the background information of Psalm 90-106: the "Numbers" Psalms - "Labouring" to enter in to God's Rest. HOW do we achieve "GODS'S REST" (Heb 3 and 4)? We give thanks and praise to God for His goodness, greatness and glory, that's how.
Psalm 95 is an encouragement to thanksgiving and praise because God is "a great God", and unbelief "grieves" Him. (actually, the Hebrew word means that He "loathes" or "detests" us!) We will never find rest in our unbelief, and we are the only ones who can change that! Hebrews 3 and 4 tells us that the Kingdom of God, the Land of Promise, and "Rest of God" - that place of living by the strength and energy of faith - these all refer to the same thing: some are symbolic, some are actual - but all require rigorous training of our hearts and minds. The opposite of entering into God's Rest by faith, is "an evil heart of unbelief" (Heb 3:12), which Psa 95:10 says is loathsome to God.
Psalm 96 is a call to worship the Lord, Who judges the whole earth "with righteousness ....and truth" (v.13). "He is to be feared above all gods." Every person, every living thing in the earth can be GLAD and REJOICE because God is in charge. As we read this Psalm out loud, our heart rejoices with them because this Psalm instills confidence in God's ability to reign, in charge of history, of my circumstances, of all outcomes. He is big enuf, mighty enuf, powerful enuf to handle whatever comes in my life. "The Lord reighs"!
RESPONSE: There are times when I can't see God in certain situations. I KNOW that He is working His own plan and His own purpose, and think that maybe I am just collateral damage (unintended civilian casualties of a military operation). That when God was destroying something evil, I just got too close to the action, and now I'm suffering too. NOW THAT'S JUST THE DEVIL TALKING.
The truth is that God loves me individually. He knows the number of hairs on my head. He cares about every detail of my life. How do I know that? Because it's the "little things" that can ruin our lives (Song 2:15) - the insignificant-seeming words, the minute facial expressions, the shortcuts in our work, the thoughts that no one knows about - - - God pays attention to all that stuff! He isn't just "generally" in charge - He is bigger than that! I BELIEVE THAT GOD MICROMANAGES!!! Challenges in life are OPPORTUNITIES. These "trials" actually help us to build spiritual muscle. They help us to know God in practical ways. Our "rigorous training" is important - as we develop our new habits (practices) of living by faith. We can't wait for a challenge to come to us before we develop a new "default". Under pressure, we will default to our HABITS and PRACTICES. So, let's use Psa 90-106 to see what those habitual thoughts and practices are!
PROVERBS 26:9-12
DEALING WITH FOOLS Prov 26) (fools are spiritual maniacs - not acknowledging accountability to God or any other authority.) Please see yesterday's comments.
(8) A fool condemns himself if he ever says anything that has any wisdom in it.
(9) A fool sins thru ignorance and shares the same punishment as the transgressor who sins knowingly.
(10) When we behave foolishly by relapsing back in sin, it is usually because we have forgotten how disgusting it (the sin) was.
(11) When we think we are so smart and so wise that we can't be taught, (opinionated and dogmatic), we are more hopeless than a fool (who knows he doesn't know everything).
